Girls California Live 23 basketball tournament brings business boom to Placer County
ROSEVILLE -- More than 100 high school basketball teams are competing in Roseville for the first-ever "Girls California Live 23" tournament.
As the basketballs bounce, the inaugural event is bringing a business boom to the Placer Valley economy.
Four thousand coaches, athletes, and fans from across California and surrounding states are flocking to the Roebbelen Center, pouring money into local hotels, restaurants, and businesses.
Kim Summers, the CEO of Placer Valley Tourism, says event-goers are generating an estimated impact of $1 million into the Placer Valley Economy. The influx of people is a welcome sight for hotels in the area.
"We're running at almost 80% occupancy which is just unheard of for the market and the time," Summer said. "We'll see continued growth … we're going to see more hotels coming into development, bringing again more economic dollars and jobs to the area."
The event center opened its doors in 2020, one month before the pandemic shut down events across the country. As the space gets back on track, local tourism is "scoring" big.
"Last year alone the event center generated 12,000 room nights for the hotels," Summers said. "Without those room nights coming in here, we probably wouldn't have such a quick turnaround and as you can see here in Roseville. Things are booming."
The Roebbelen Center's basketball courts are filled with some of the most highly-recruited girls' high school basketball players. As event director Harold Abend says, the NCAA-Certified Scholastic Viewing event is an opportunity for these athletes to take their skills to the next level.
"One game, we have almost 40 college scouts," Abend said.
This includes dozens of Division 1 basketball coaches who are looking for up-and-coming talent.
The three-day tournament continues until Saturday, June 17. The event is open to the public, with tickets priced at $10 at the door.